Hanwoo Beef Distribution Conditions using the Animal Products Traceability System

The objective of this study was to investigate the distribution conditions for Hanwoo in capital area. Hanwoo beef samples (N=206) were collected in Seoul from June 2022 to April 2023. The individual information, distribution time, distribution channel, and distribution location for the samples were collected with the animal products traceability system. In addition, the exposure temperature of Hanwoo beef from retail stores to the final consumption place was collected from the regional temperature observation data from the Korea Meteorological Administration for the dates the sample collected. It was found that the proportion of Hanwoo beef distributed in Seoul was the highest in 30–39-month-old and steers. Regarding the location of each distribution channel, slaughterhouses and meat packaging companies had the highest share in Gyeonggi-do. Transport times were 4.3-249.5 min from the slaughterhouse to the meat packaging business, 64.1-141.0 min from the slaughterhouse to the meat sales business, and from 19.4-344.0 min from the meat packaging business to the meat sales business. Finally, it took 22.0 to 88.0 min from the meat sales business to consumers. The atmosphere temperature ranges to which Hanwoo beef is exposed from the meat sales business to the consumer were -2.1℃-28.8℃ in spring and fall, 18.1℃-33.4℃ in summer, and -9.6℃-14.3℃ in winter. Thus, consumers should not expose Hanwoo beef to a temperature suitable for the microbial growth for a long time during the transport to the final consumption place. This result might be useful in distribution simulation for the microbial fates with the predictive models and in the microbial risk assessment.